Only A Witness
by T.F. Allen
Summary: In Decepticon custody, Elita-1 finds herself being led out to the firing line, wondering how many minutes remaim.


**In English class last year, I read a small pamphlet called _War and Peace_, and we got really into "imitation writing," where we take a passage from another author and write a scene in his style. This story is an imitation of _War and Peace _Volume IV, Part 1 (and I never noted the chapter, so you're on your own there). I initially wasn't too happy with it, as it was one of those things put together in two hours the night before it was due, but now that I reread it, it seems to be growing on me. This takes place in its own universe, a continuity of my own making where Starscream started a Decepticon revolt much like that of the Prime continuity. Except this universe has Megatron working behind the scenes controlling Starscream, his nephew, who just so happens to be in the High Council... until he blew it up, that is. Anyway, this is long after Megatron revealed himself. Now, Elita-1 has been captured by the Decepticons, and she is completely alone.**

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><p><em>Only A Witness<em>

"Get up!" the guard shouted. Elita-1 snapped out of stasis and looked around. Before she could realize what was happening, the guard's gun was in her back and she was being led out of her cell and outside to stand by a wall. A great crowd stood around the wall in a semicircle, watching intently. There were bots from virtually every city-state staring at her; bots from Kaon, Praxus, Vos, the Tagon Heights, – a few even looked to be from Iacon or Crystal City!

A list of names was read, and "Elita-1" was sixth. A moment later, she and the other five prisoners were lined up against the wall. Drumming sounded from both ends of the semicircle. That sound could have meant only one thing, and from the moment she heard it, Elita lost her ability to think or reason. Only one thing mattered to her now: that what was about to happen would pass as quickly and as painlessly as possible. She glanced about at her fellow prisoners, studying them carefully.

The first two of them, the ones at the far side of the line bore no helmets of any kind. One was a tall, slender Autobot who was obviously from Crystal City. The other was a soldier large and black; he wore a faceplate that hid his expression from all. The third bore no Autobot insignia, in fact, no insignia of any kind. He seemed to be some sort of servant, or at least not a soldier, for he had no place to store a weapon. The fourth was a rather sharp character – probably from the Badlands – and wore a golden beard. The fifth prisoner, the one who stood immediately beside her, seemed to have been plucked from the mines in Kaon; he was thin and frail, with rust in his joints.

A cold, unfeeling voice suddenly said, in answer to a question of how many to shoot at once, "Take them out by twos." Instantly two soldiers were selected, each armed with a large photon cannon that could easily kill from quite a distance. They looked uneasy, as though killing in battle was suitable to them, but that a public execution seemed to them dishonorable. Yet they were willing to obey orders.

Then an official-looking Decepticon read out the sentence of death to all in the crowd and to those charged. He read it twice, once in the common tongue, and once in the slur of words that Kaon was known for, a language in which Elita was not quite skilled.

Then Elita-1 was aware of the sound of guns cocking, and saw the shooters take aim at the first two in the line. The dark Autobot soldier did not move, but the Crystal City official looked as if he thought the two Decepticons too cowardly to fire, for he bore a smug, spiteful smile on his face.

There was a terrible sound like the crash of thunder echoing in the sonic canyons. Elita was shocked and momentarily incapacitated by the noise. She did not see nor hear nor even think anything until she was aware of the shells of those lost souls being dumped into a pit. No; they were not shells. The two moved still – but they would not last more than a few cycles.

The shooters took aim again and Elita-1 looked away. She didn't want to see this. The horrible sound returned and, this time, she knew the two prisoners were dead when their battered bodies were added to the pile. She watched as the last of the condemned trembled in fear. He could not understand why the Decepticons were doing this to him. Elita-1 realized that he was not frightened, but betrayed. The Decepticons, like this poor ex-miner, originated from Kaon. Starscream had always made it clear how he started this rebellion because of what he saw happening in Kaon. He claimed to be a representative of the oppressed. This poor civilian now saw the Decepticons for who they truly were.

Why? Why were these bots being killed? And why was she, Elita-1, one of Optimus Prime's most trusted advisors, numbered with these soldiers and civilians? Only one of them was even close to Elita in rank. Was Megatron trying to frighten her? Surely he knew who she was when he captured her. Elita had thought that she had been captured because of her rank. Was she believed to be a regular soldier and not a chief commander? Even so, why were there civilians in this bunch? What had they done to incur Megatron's wrath? Was it even Megatron who had given this order? If not Megatron, then who? Who was it that was doing this?

This was what flashed through Elita-1's mind as the Decepticons took aim and fired. She did not realize that no one aimed a weapon in her direction as it should have been. This time, she saw the execution. The blast from the cannon seemed to come out silently. She saw the ball of light creep toward the terrified murder victim, but heard no blast. It struck and sent hot liquid energon everywhere. Her optics snapped off as she waited for the Decepticons to fire at her.

But they did not. Instead, they dumped the fifth body into the pit and set them all ablaze. She watched as the fire ate them, tearing the bodies to pieces. She heard the screams of the one who still lived. Then, her guard roared at her to return to her cell. She heard him not, and remained at the wall, with her optics locked on the blaze.

The Decepticons began to leave, and Elita heard a voice say something about destroying a Decepticon outpost. She was finally aware that she had not been executed. Elita-1 had been spared. No, she had been brought to watch this. She was only a witness. Why? Was Megatron simply trying to torment her? What could he possibly gain from this? Why was she meant to witness such a sight?

"Didn't you hear me? I said GET BACK TO YOUR CELL NOW!" The next thing Elita-1 was aware of was the guard shoving her back into her cell and activating the energy bars. She was left alone to dwell on this terrible sight. She looked out the one window of her cell and saw one of the shooters still staring at the smoldering remains of the Cybertronians he had killed.

He turned away.


End file.
